Hiding
by starringdakota
Summary: The Doctor had been talked into dinner at the Ponds' house, but finds something inside that he certainly never expected.  Just a short thing about one of my headcanons, carrying on from the end of the Christmas special, please review!
1. Chapter 1

The Doctor walked inside, following his companions. It had been so long, yet nothing had changed… Amy was still waiting. Happy tears. That was new. That was so human. The Ponds had disappeared into the house. He stuck his head into a couple of rooms before going to the dining room – he was interested. Always curious, The Doctor, though he hoped that in the Ponds' house there was nothing too dangerous behind any of the door he opened that he curiosity wouldn't end badly (like it did fairly often, he had to admit). He wondered into what was a kind of study.

There were pictures of Amy and Rory on the walls, family members, River. It certainly wasn't your normal family photo with the daughter looking older than the parents but they made do. They tried to think of themselves as a family nonetheless, The Doctor would never understand how much he also belonged in that photo, but he didn't think of things like that. He was just glad that little Amelia Pond and her Centurion were safe. Moving on, he found a photo with Mels too. Wow, that was awkward.

On the desk sat two bottles of 'Petrichor' – the perfume he had seen advertised in the shopping centre. He was so proud. Picking one up he sprayed a bit into the air and stepped through it a couple of times. It smelled pretty good.

He then made his way towards the dining room where he could ear Amy laughing away and stepping in he saw something that he never expected. No fair! He wasn't even looking for trouble this time!

**A/N: this is going to be just a short little story about one of my headcanons after the christmas episode. yes, i know that christmas was quite a while ago now but please, forgive me, i just got home from two months in france. updates will be quick :) also, if you like/are interested/are bored, i highly enjoy reviews! i love that there are some people out there who enjoy my writing**

**Dakota xx**


	2. Introductions

Amy turned to him when he walked in. She could smell him, 'Were you snooping around in the study?'

The octor had no answer, just stared at the other three people seated around the table, the two familiar faces.

Rory was the one who did the official introduction, 'Gwen, Rhys, Jack, this is our friend…'

'John Smith' The Doctor butted in before Rory could finish his sentence. Rory was momentarily confused but did understand how a name of 'The Doctor' can raise questions. Doctor who? Amy gave The Doctor a look, it only lasted a second.

'Yes, John Smith' Rory finished.

'John Smith, eh?' Jack said smiling. This new man was attractive, 'I had a friend called that once…'

'Yes, um, fairly common name, I'm told'. Captain Jack Harkness didn't recognise him, had no clue who he was. They hadn't met since his last regeneration, seen each other since that bar when he was dying the last time. Jack had no clue that his Doctor was standing in the same room, the man that he constantly waits for, who made him into a better man, a good man.

Rhys stuck out his hand, 'I'm Rory's cousin', Rhys supplied as explanation for their presence, thick Welsh accent like his wife, as John Smith sat down at the table. 'Been a while since we seen each other last though, nothin' like a nice family Christmas to get us back together again'. Rhys gave Rory a hard hit on the back which only winded the Roman slightly, he hid it well with a laugh and a smile.

'Cousins?' The Doctor asked

'Yeah, fathers were brothers, though mine obviously went to Wales instead of staying here. Didn't get along too well, but Rory and I were always mates' Rhys beamed.

It had been such a long time since he had seen his younger cousin. One year, their fathers had a huge disagreement, much larger than the usual and they completely stopped seeing each other, so the sons didn't see each other much either. As they grew older did meet a couple of times, but the past few years had been way too crazy.

Amy was seated at the head of the table with Gwen to her right, next to Rhys, and Rory on her left, next to The Doctor and Jack at the opposite end. She turned to Gwen and restarted their conversation from before The Doctor arrived at the door. 'So, how's work been then?'. Jack gave Gwen a serious look, interested in this line of discussion

'Works been fine. Can get pretty busy for the Police in Cardiff sometimes, you know…' Gwen couldn't tell Amy and Rory and their friend about what she really did. They wouldn't believe her, or understand. They aren't allowed to know. Civilians aren't allowed to know. About the Rift, or the Weevils, Torchwood, any of it. If anyone let anything slip tonight, Jack and Gwen were ready to Retcon them if need be. For tonight, for the sake of the others, she was still an ordinary Policewoman working the football matches with all the other tired Police. She was not a crime-fighting, gun-toting, alien-handling Torchwood employee. Just PC Gwen Cooper.

She looked over at the Captain who gave her a little nod, which The Doctor didn't fail to notice, and a nod he also understood. For all intents and purposes, she was PC Gwen Cooper, didn't believe in aliens, let alone had seen one in her ordinary life. And Jack? The Doctor figured Jack would have some intelligent lie about his work too. Maybe just charm his way around any direct questioning. One thing was for certain though, he was certainly not an immortal man who had lived through thousands of centuries.

He could have no clue that Rory had lived just as much, erased from time, reborn, spent two thousand years as a Roman Centurion guarding the Pandorica and his soulmate. Jack had no way of knowing that. Just as Gwen could have no clue that Amy knew the same as she knew and, in some cases, more.

That she had travelled through space and time, seeing the infinite horror and beauty of such a vast and expansive universe. She had seen things Gwen herself could only imagine, and had imagined every day since she started working for Torchwood. Different world and species. She had spent months in the hands of the Silents and Madame Kovarian, as a Ganger – thinking that she was going so far, while in reality she moved not an inch. Suffered loss and love and anger, sadness and ecstatic joy, millions of miles away from home with her two boys. Had a half-Time Lord daughter who was brainwashed to kill The Doctor only to actually kill him, then save him, then forget, then fall in love, then marry him. Neither of them could know and neither was willing to tell

Gwen changed the subject, 'Gosh, enough about me! What about you? How have you been the past few years? What have you been up to?''

**A/N: i know this could have been a Torchwood/Doctor Who crossover but i figured that it was all part of the Doctor Who universe, and Gwen and Jack have made appearances in the series as well as references to Rhys. i just like to think that Rhys and Rory Williams are BAMFs cousins from a long line of BAMFs and what says family more than Christmas?**

**hope you like :)**

**Dakota xx**


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